There has been heretofore provided widely marketed simulated football games of a vibrating surface type, in which a surface is provided with markings corresponding to the football gridiron and a corresponding number of players which are arrayed by the players on the playing surface. A vibrator mechanism causes the players to be advanced to simulate an actual football game.
Such have games heretofore been provided with passing and kicking figures in which passing plays are simulated by means of a special figure adapted to cause a projectile to be released and directed towards a corresponding player, impact of the projectile indicating a completed pass play or interception if the player impacted is an opposing player. Similarly, kicking figures are provided to execute punting and field goal plays.
Heretofore such figures have produced relatively low accuracy and the ranges of the figures bears no relationship to an actual capability of human players, in terms of the distances of the gridiron markings. Accordingly, in such electric football games as heretofore been provided, such passing and kicking has played but a minor role in the playing of the game.
Such inaccuracy was due in part to the method of projecting the projectile, that is, the projectile was secured to a resiliently deflectable member of either the passer or kicker in such a way that release was erratic, affecting the trajectory and range of the projectile. In addition, the means of propelling the projectile was determined by the resilience of the member which resilience is such as to enable a very much greater range of the passer or kicker than that corresponding to an actual human player in terms of the dimensions of the playing surface.
Such games have been extremely simple in configuration in conformance with the economic realities of marketing such games. That is, these figures must be relatively simple so as to be able to be manufactured cheaply.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an electric football game of the type described in which highly accurate passer and kicker figures are provided which figures have respective passing and kicking ranges and accuracy generally corresponding to that of an actual player in terms of the dimensions of the football playing surface.
It is another object of the present invention to provide such passer and kicker figures which are simple in configuration and yet provide highly accurate passing and kicking such as to improve this aspect of such games so as to be a much greater factor in the game, and to thereby enhance the overall interest in playing the game.